Mea Culpa

April 07, 2015

In their April 2015 issue, Bon Appétit magazine featured a Food Lover’s Guide to Weddings that included restaurant recommendations for nuptial meals, supported by punchy statements that read, “The best way to make sure your caterer doesn’t serve bone-dry chicken: Don’t hire one,” and “Lose the caterer.”

May 29, 2014

The recently opened National September 11 Memorial Museum has seen its fair share of controversy in just a few short weeks. Margaret Files takes a look at how they've communicated some of the necessary changes.

February 24, 2014

We love it when companies know how to take ownership of an issue and apologize.

Fitness company Fitbit just did exactly that, issuing a voluntary recall of their Force fitness-tracker wristband after users reported rashes and blisters. Take a look at our breakdown of CEO James Park's thoughtful statement.

January 16, 2014

This Monday “How I Met Your Mother” screened a controversial Kung-Fu themed episode. The episode featured such scenes as exaggerated accents, characters drinking tea, eating noodles, or practicing calligraphy. The show, the latest in their run of “Slapsgiving” gags, caused an angry response (helpfully cataloged under the hashtag #HowIMetYourRacism).

But we love how they handled it. Take a look at Shelley Whiddon's thoughts on how the creators of the show responded.

January 15, 2014

On Monday Target launched a major PR effort to apologize to customers for a massive cyber-attack on its network over the holidays. The retailer ran a full-page apology letter from CEO Gregg Steinhafel in some of the nation’s major newspapers, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Washington Post and USA Today. Steinhafel also granted his first full interview since the breach to CNBC.

June 27, 2013

Today, credibility is among the most important of business and personal assets. Without it, we can’t persuade, engage or sell to our audiences. And credibility is anchored in our humanity – both as people and as organizations. To earn credibility you must be human. You must be flawed.